Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH) Stock Price Up 3.9% - Should You Buy?

Meritage Homes Co. (NYSE:MTH - Get Free Report) shares rose 3.9% on Friday . The stock traded as high as $70.52 and last traded at $69.22. Approximately 766,674 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 20% from the average daily volume of 955,226 shares. The stock had previously closed at $66.61.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on MTH. Seaport Res Ptn upgraded shares of Meritage Homes from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Meritage Homes from $126.00 to $118.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on Meritage Homes from $97.00 to $90.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on Meritage Homes from $117.50 to $100.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Meritage Homes from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Monday, March 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Meritage Homes has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $106.25.

Meritage Homes Stock Up 6.5 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $4.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.09 and a beta of 1.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 1.61 and a quick ratio of 1.75. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $72.19 and a 200 day simple moving average of $83.95.

Meritage Homes (NYSE:MTH - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The construction company reported $4.72 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.55 by $0.17. Meritage Homes had a net margin of 12.29% and a return on equity of 15.90%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Meritage Homes Co. will post 9.44 EPS for the current year.

Meritage Homes Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th were paid a dividend of $0.43 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.58%. This is an increase from Meritage Homes's previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. Meritage Homes's payout ratio is 13.16%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, COO Clinton Szubinski sold 595 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.29, for a total transaction of $43,607.55. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 30,547 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,238,789.63. This trade represents a 1.91 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Steven J. Hilton acquired 11,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $74.51 per share, for a total transaction of $819,610.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 811,192 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $60,441,915.92. This trade represents a 1.37 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 1,683 shares of company stock valued at $122,547. Corporate insiders own 2.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Meritage Homes

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pinnacle Holdings LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Meritage Homes in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Allworth Financial LP lifted its stake in Meritage Homes by 545.5% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 213 shares of the construction company's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Meritage Homes in the 4th quarter worth approximately $92,000. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in Meritage Homes by 77.7% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 606 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 265 shares during the period. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Meritage Homes by 235.1% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 677 shares of the construction company's stock valued at $104,000 after purchasing an additional 475 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 98.44% of the company's stock.

About Meritage Homes

Meritage Homes Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, designs and builds single-family attached and detached homes in the United States. The company operates through two segments, Homebuilding and Financial Services. It acquires and develops land; and constructs, markets, and sells homes for entry-level and first move-up buyers in Arizona, California, Colorado, Utah, Texas, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee.